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5 'Low-Fat' Foods That Are Making It Harder to Control Your Diabetes

Fat Is Not the Enemy

Walk through any supermarket, and you’ll see low- and reduced-fat versions of your favorite foods lining the shelves. Are these picks the better choices? “Usually, foods that are not naturally low in fat but that are made to be low in fat have sodium or sugar added,” says Ana Reisdorf, RD, CDE, a nutrition consultant in Lake Forest, California. “Fat provides flavor and makes things taste good. So when you remove it, you need to make the food palatable again.”

Because of this, lower-fat and fat-free foods can end up with a significantly higher amount of sugar and carbs, which can complicate meal planning for people with diabetes. These foods can be consumed in moderation, but paying attention to the kind and amount of fat you consume can help you better manage your weight and blood sugar, not to mention reduce your risk of heart disease, which is linked with diabetes.

Next time you’re jotting down your shopping list, consider cutting back on these low-fat foods if you have prediabetes or diabetes.

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Low-Fat Salad Dressing

It may be surprising that the healthy fats in salad dressings can be good for you. “It’s important to realize that low-fat salad dressings may not be as diabetes-friendly as they seem,” says Shahzadi Devje, RD, CDE, who is in private practice in Toronto. “Fat serves to help keep us full and satisfied, and also supports the absorption of fat-soluble vitamins found in salads.” Those health-helping carotenoids in your salad’s veggies and fruits? You’ll absorb more of them from drizzling your greens with a healthy fat, like an oil-based salad dressing, according to a study published in June 2012 in the journal Molecular Nutrition & Food Research. You can easily make your own with extra-virgin olive oil, fruit juice, herbs, and spices. All you need is 1 to 2 tablespoons (tbsp) of dressing. In fact, the researchers in the 2012 study found the biggest benefits when adding about 1 ½ tbsp of healthy fat to a salad.

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Reduced-Fat Peanut Butter

Peanut butter should be made only with peanuts and oil. Cut down the heart-healthy and satiating monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats in peanut butter, and you’re left with an inferior product that typically contains about as many calories, but more sugar and sodium — plus filler ingredients. None of this is good news for a person with diabetes. “When fat is removed from a food, so is the flavor,” says Heather Mason, RDN, who is in private practice in Los Angeles. Plus, eating nuts may help lower risk of heart disease in women with type 2 diabetes. According to a study published in July 2009 in The Journal of Nutrition, women who ate at least five 1-ounce servings of nuts or 1-tbsp portions of peanut butter per week had lower LDL, or “bad,” cholesterol levels, plus a significantly lower risk of heart disease.

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Margarine

While there’s some debate about whether the general population should be cutting back on fat — particularly fat from dairy — experts agree that everyone, including people with diabetes, are better off eating less of the saturated variety.

This doesn’t mean you should choose margarine over butter, though. Instead, reach for olive, grapeseed, or canola oil when cooking. “Many of my clients opt for margarine because they’ve heard it’s a better alternative to butter,” says Devje. “It’s important to be aware that margarine may contain salt as a means to enhance flavor, which may [negatively] impact blood pressure control. People with diabetes are encouraged to decrease the amount of sodium in their diet to help lower their blood pressure.”

Another margarine problem? It’s likely to contain trans fats, which are also bad for your health because they can raise your cholesterol.

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Low-Fat Yogurt

“It’s counterintuitive, but full-fat dairy may be healthier for you than low-fat dairy,” says Diane Norwood, RDN, CDE, who is based in Virginia Beach, Virginia. And research suggests that people who eat full-fat dairy may weigh less than people who opt for the low-fat version — eating high-fat dairy is linked with a reduced risk of obesity, according to a review published in February 2013 in the European Journal of Nutrition. People who are overweight or obese have a higher likelihood of developing type 2 diabetes, but according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), losing just 7 to 10 percent of body weight can prevent or delay the onset of the condition.

Whatever kind of yogurt you buy, consider going with the plain version and sweetening it on your own with fruit, cinnamon, or unsweetened cocoa powder. “Store-bought fruited yogurt contains a lot of sugar,” notes Norwood. And low- or non-fat flavored yogurts tend to have considerably more sugar than their full-fat siblings. “After consuming carbs, your blood sugar will spike almost immediately,” says Mason. “Fat, on the other hand, has almost no effect on blood sugar.” But it can help you feel fuller for longer, which is a win.

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Diet Soda

“It seems harmless since it has zero calories and no carbohydrates to raise your blood sugar, but studies show [diet soda] doesn’t help you lose weight,” says Norwood. Drinking at least one diet soda a day also puts you at greater risk for metabolic syndrome, a condition that’s defined as the presence of several factors, including high fasting blood sugar, high blood pressure, and abnormal cholesterol levels, according to a study published in May 2015 in the journal Nutrients. Having metabolic syndrome puts you at greater risk for diabetes. This is something to take particular note of if you have prediabetes or a family history of type 2 diabetes.

Drinking diet soda may also confuse your taste buds, increasing your hankering for all things sweet. A study published in December 2014 in the journal Appetite found that people who sipped a diet drink were more likely to pick candy versus gum or water, compared to people who drank regular soda or mineral water. “This may be because soda confuses your taste buds and leaves you craving sweets, or it may be that psychologically you overcompensate by eating more high-calorie foods because you’re saving calories by drinking soda,” says Norwood. Whatever the reason, choose unsweetened beverages, like sparkling water with a splash of fruit juice, so your taste buds don't get used to an overly sweet taste.

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